Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Cheng Ho

(Encyclopedia)Cheng Ho or Zheng He both: jŭngˈ ho͝oˈ [key], 1371–c.1433, admiral, diplomat, and explorer during China's Ming dynasty. At 10 he was captured by Chinese troops in Yunnan, castrated, and sent int...

head-hunting

(Encyclopedia)head-hunting, practice of taking and preserving the head of a slain enemy. It has occurred throughout the world from ancient times into the 20th cent. In Europe, it flourished in the Balkans until the...

glaucoma

(Encyclopedia)glaucoma glôkōˈmə [key], ocular disorder characterized by pressure within the eyeball caused by an excessive amount of aqueous humor (the fluid substance filling the eyeball). This causes pressure...

elevator, in machinery

(Encyclopedia)elevator, in machinery, device for transporting people or goods from one level to another. The term is applied to the enclosed structures as well as the open platforms used to provide vertical transpo...

Elizabeth, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Elizabeth, city (2020 pop. 137,298), seat of Union co., NE N.J., on Newark Bay; inc. 1855. It is a shipping and transportation hub, with some of the wor...

norepinephrine

(Encyclopedia)norepinephrine nôrˌĕpīnĕfˈrən [key], a neurotransmitter in the catecholamine family that mediates chemical communication in the sympathetic nervous system, a branch of the autonomic nervous sys...

meristem

(Encyclopedia)meristem mĕrˈistĕmˌ [key], a specialized section of plant tissue characterized by cell division and growth. Much of the mature plant's growth is provided by meristems. Apical meristems found at th...

liquid air

(Encyclopedia)liquid air, ordinary air that has been liquefied by compression and cooling to extremely low temperatures (see liquefaction). Its commercial preparation involves purification by washing to remove solu...

Lloyd's

(Encyclopedia)Lloyd's, London insurance underwriting corporation of many separate syndicates; often called Lloyd's of London. Founded in the late 17th cent. by a group of merchants, shipowners, and insurance broker...

López, Francisco Solano

(Encyclopedia)López, Francisco Solano lōˈpās [key], 1826?–1870, president of Paraguay (1862–70). He was the son of Carlos Antonio López, who made him a brigadier general at 18. Appointed head of a diploma...